Dust mop cleaner and receptacle



Feb. 18, 1936. R. c. LIEDTKE ET AL 'DUST MOP CLEANER AND RECEPTACLE Filed Oct. 8, 1932 Patented Feb. 18, 1936 DUST MOP CLEANER AND RECEPTACLE Raymond C. Liedtke, Hankinson, and Carl 0. Wolen, Northgate, N. Dak.

Application October 8,

5 Claims.

Our invention'relates to a dust mop cleaner and receptacle which may be designed and constructed so that it is a part of the building in which it is used, or may be made of a portable nature so that it may be taken from place to place wherever it is desired.

A feature resides in providing a dust mop cleaner which is formed with side, end and bottom walls which are spaced away from the inner surface of the receptacle and provide a grating or netting against which the flexible cords of the mop may be rubbed or scraped to remove the dust from the mop while the mop is reciprocated in the receptacle.

The receptacle is constructed with a door which may be readily opened by releasing spring catch members which hold the door in closed position, and when in open position, the door may tilt forward so that the body or head of the mop may be inserted readily into the receptacle. This door is formed with a slot through which the handle may protrude from the head of the mop while the mop is held in the receptacle and the slot in which the handle projects is closed by a flexible brush or other suitable means which normally maintains the handle slot closed at all times so as to confine the dust shaken from the mop within the receptacle. By this closure means which flexes about the handle to keep the handle slot closed at all times, the dust is confined therein and such closure means may be of any character or nature so as to accomplish the function of closing or sealing the receptacle, yet permitting the mop to be shaken vigorously to remove the dust from the same.

A further feature and advantage of the receptacle resides in a dust collector bag which is open at the topand which is covered by a movable grate or netting portion. This receptacle collects the heavy dust or particles which are shaken and rubbed from the mop cords, and whenever it is desired, this receptacle may be readily removed by opening the front cover of the receptacle and lifting the grate which covers the receptacle proper.

The ,portable dust mop cleaner and receptacle may be supported on a weighted base, if it is desired, to hold the same firmly in place where it is set on the floor, or may be provided with casters so that it may be rolled over the floor from place to place and by means of the handle, it may be lifted and carried to any point in the building where it is desired to be used.

Our portable dust mop cleaner as well as the stationary cabinet for cleaning the mops may be 1932, Serial No. 636,924

connected with an air cleaning means so as to assist in collecting the dust away from the mop and also drawing the dust down through the dust collecting receptacle or sack in the base of the cleaner. We have illustrated this vacuum clean- 5 ing means as associated with the portable receptacle only, it being apparent that the same may be adapted tothe stationary construction equally well and performing the same functions.

The simplicity of our dust mop cleaner and receptacle is an outstanding feature of merit, together with the neat, compact design, as well as the structure which provides a means of closing the same so that the handle of the mop may be operated to shake the mop head in the receptacle, yet maintaining a dust-proof inclosure for the mop, thereby collecting and removing the dust in a practical manner from the mop head.

In the drawing forming part of this specification:

Figure 1 is a front View of our dust mop cleaner and receptacle, as it would appear built into the wall of a building.

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a transverse section on the line 33 '25 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 illustrates a perspective of the portable dust mop cleaner and receptacle.

Figure 5 is a vertical section through the portable mop cleaner receptacle illustrated in Figure 4.

Our dust mop cleaner and receptacle A is made in the form of a cabinet having side walls i ll and a movable cover B.

The cabinet side walls In may be of metal or.v any other suitable material and are formed to provide a receptacle so as to collect dust within the same and prevent scattering of the dust in cleaning a dust mop. The mop C is illustrated in dotted outline in Figure 2 and may be of any suit-. 40 able construction having a handle portion l l and a head portion l2, the head portion I2 carrying the flexible dust collecting cords or members and of the ordinary well known construction of a dust mop.

The cover B is hinged at l3 to the frame M of the receptacle A and is held in closed position by the spring catches 15. The catches l5 have protruding finger engaging lugs it which project out of the front of the cover B through the slot ll. The catches l5 have an inner plate [8 which normally closes the slot I! so as to make the same dust-proof and this plate portion slides back and forth on the inside of the cover B when the catches lugs 6.

Within the cabinet walls In we provide the wire mesh grating walls is against which the head l2 of the mop may be rubbed or scraped when the same is being cleaned within the receptacle A. The lower wall 20 of this grating is hinged at 2| and lifts up into the dotted position illustrated in Figure 2, so as to give access to the dust collecting bag 22 which is held in the base D of the receptacle. The grating or mesh walls I9 are held spaced from the cabinet walls l so as to provide an air space around the same which permits the dust which is scraped from the mop head I2 to slide down and into the bag 22. The walls l9 are positioned along the top sides and back of the receptacle A, whereas, the cover B closes the front of the same. The bag 22 may be made of cloth or any other suitable material and is freely removable from the base D so that it may be emptied of any dust or particles of dirt which have been collected in the same from the mop C.

The cover B is formed with a vertical mop han- I are operated by engaging the dle slot 23, the lower end of which is provided with a cushioned bumper 24 to protect the handle I l of the mop when it is moved up and down in the slot 23, and a cushioned bumper 25 is positioned at the upper end of the slot 23 being supported at this end by the frame instead of the cover B. This leaves the upper end of the slot 23 open so that the mop handle may be inserted therein when the cover B is opened on its hinge l3. When the cover B is closed, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the bumper 25 closes the upper end of the slot 23. We provide a pair of flexible brush closures 26 and 2'1 which are mounted on the inner surface of the cover B adjacent the edge of the slot 23, while the bristles of the brushes 26 and 21 closely meet or interfit approximately along the line 28 centrally of the slot 23. Thus we provide a flexible brush-like closure means 26 and 2'! for completely closing the slot 23 around the handle I l of the mop C. This brush-like closure means is sufficiently flexible to permit the handle I l to be shaken almost as freely as if the brush closure was not positioned in the slot 23. This is desirable as it permits the person handling the mop to readily insert it in the dust cleaner and receptacle A and shake it vigorously while the cords of the mop are brought into engagement with the grate-like walls l9.

In the portable dust mop cleaner and receptacle A illustrated in Figures 4 and 5, the construction is virtually identical to that just described where the cabinet is built into the wall of the building. We have, however, shown in this portable construction a vacuum cleaner means connecting the bag 22 by the tube 30 to the vacuum fan 3| which is operated by an electric motor through the electrical cord connection 32 and an outlet or air exhaust passageway extends from the blower 3| to exhaust air from the inside of the receptacle A through the bag 22 and out through the exhaust opening 33. This provides a desirable portable means for cleaning dust mops and has the added advantage of the vacuum means for assisting in drawing the dust and particles from the mop down into the receptacle 22. In use our dust mop cleaner and receptacle is very desirable because of its neat simple con- 5 struction and owing to the fact that the mop is virtually entirely inclosed within a receptacle from which dust can not readily escape even when the mop is vigorously shook within the same, and at the same time permits the dust to be urged from the mop by the grating and vacuum, thus 'making the use of a dust mop more desirable because it can be easily and quickly cleaned, and having an advantage over ordinary vacuum cleaners because of the light weight and the ease with which the mop can be moved from place to place to collect the ordinary lint and dust.

The features, details and construction of our dust mop cleaner and receptacle have been set forth in accordance with the patent statutes and the advantages thereof will be readily apparent. The appending claims will define the scope of the invention and should be applicable to such uses and variations as disclosed and defined therein.

We claim:

1. A dust collector for mops including, a cabinet having a slot in one wall of said cabinet for the handle of the mop, and a brush closure for said slot including bristles bendable equally in any direction.

2. A dust collector for mops including, a receptacle containing the dust from the cords of the mop when the mop is shaken in the receptacle, one wall of said receptacle having a slot for the handle of the mop having means for protecting the handle when reciprocated therein, and a flexible bristle closure adapted to fit closely around the handle, said bristles bendable equally in any direction, keeping the handle slot closed at all times. 40

3. A dust receptacle for dust mops including,

a body portion having a handle slot in one wall thereof out of which the handle of the mop may project, brush members having flexible bristles capable of bending in any direction adapted to' 5 meet in said slot about the dust mop handle and adapted to provide a closure for said slot.

4. A dust mop cleaner including, a receptacle having slot means in one wall thereof for permitting the mop to be reciprocated while in said receptacle, a grating secured spaced in said cabinet from the side walls thereof, a dust collecting bag in the bottom of said cabinet, and a grating portion covering said dust bag movably mounted with respect to the remainder of the grating.

5. A dust mop receptacle including a casing, sides, a top and a bottom in said casing, a door in one of said sides spaced from said bottom, a dust receptacle of material in the bottom portion of said casing below the level of said door, a grat- )0 ing secured to and spaced from the side walls of said casing on the inside thereof, and a pivoted grating over said dust receptacle.

RAYMOND C. LIEDTKE. CARL O. WOLEN. 

